When taking an X-ray of any area of the body it is important that the body part be properly posed such that the condition under examination will be displayed optimally to reveal the information needed to be analyzed or treat the patient. Proper posing becomes even more critical when a body joint is being examined. In such a situation the relative position of multiple parts of the body is critical. Practices that are currently used are, for example, to have the patient hold the hand of the wrist that is to be X-rayed with his or her other hand or to wrap a towel around the hand of the wrist that is to be X-rayed and pull on the towel with the other hand to bend the wrist at a desired angle. However any technique, in which the physician or an X-ray technician instructs the patients in how the joint should be properly posed, and relies on the patient to maintain such a proper pose, will result in numerous errors requiring repeat x-rays. When using such techniques there is no assurance that the patient will maintain his or her arm joint as it was instructed to be posed. The physician or X-ray technician would become overexposed to X-ray if he or she were to remain with the patient to assure that the proper pose is retained. Furthermore the angle of a joint that is to be X-rayed can, in some situations, be so critical that an error of several degrees in the angulation may render the results useless or less than optimum. If repeat X-rays are required, the patient is exposed to additional doses of radiation, with no assurance that the correct angulation will be attained in the subsequent X-ray. This problem becomes even more critical in medical situations in which it is necessary to compare a series of X-rays to chart the progress of the treatment and healing. A patient in this situation will be exposed to considerable amounts of X-rays during the course of the treatment and the duplication of failed attempts could easily over expose the patient to X-rays. Furthermore in the process of comparing one X-ray to another in a series it is essential that all X-rays be taken at the identical angle. In these situations a device for posing a joint at a precise angle that is known to optimize the usefulness of the X-ray is required.
Such a situation exist in the treatment of wrist injuries caused from repetitive motion. The disorders go by many names including carpal tunnel syndrome, tendinitis or general terms such as repetitive strain injury. This painful disorder of the wrist and hand is induced by compression on the median nerve by bones and other structures that have become displaced within the carpal tunnel. The disorder can be successfully treated by relocating the bones and other structures of the carpal tunnel to their proper position, without recourse to surgery provided the displacement within the carpal tunnel is accurately diagnosed and then properly treated. A prerequisite to such treatment is the accurate diagnosis and understanding of the displaced condition that exist in the carpal tunnel. An X-ray of the area, taken at the proper angle is an essential part of this diagnosis. It has been found that after treatments there can be a partial retroceding of the prior condition, and a series of treatments are required to attain a permanent correction. For this reason it is important that the progress from one treatment to the next be accurately measured and documented. Reliable comparisons can only be made if the X-rays being compared were taken at the same precise angle. In the treatment of carpal tunnel syndrome it has been found through extensive experimental work that the optimum angle to X-ray the carpal tunnel is 70.degree.. At a 70.degree. angle the bony and other structures in the carpal tunnel are seen at maximum visibility relative to each other. It has been found that this optimum angle, of 70.degree. is valid regardless of the size of the individual or the size of the forearm and hand under consideration. However, it has been found that some individuals, perhaps as a result of a prior injury to the wrist, cannot tolerate elevating their hand 70.degree. relative to their forearm. In such case an angle less than optimum, for example 60.degree., can be used and although optimum visibility is not obtained, this is the best available information, and an experienced physician can obtain acceptable results. It should be noted that if an insert is used at a less than optimum angle that same insert must be used in subsequent X-ray pictures. The prior art includes devices for supporting human body members in a variety of different positions to facilitate X-rays. However, the known devices are adjustable devices that are designed to exert stress on the body parts being examined and lack the means for properly aligning and assuring that the a precise angle for a particular condition will be used at all times. Such devices are shown in the U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,521,976; 4,045,678; 4,320,749 and 4,323,080.
It is therefore a primary objective of the present invention to provide a device that can retain a patients limb in a precise angular relationship to optimize the revelation of the x-ray for a particular condition under consideration.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide a device for posing a patients limb for use when a series of x-rays are required to chart the progress of a condition and it is critical that the limb must be in the identical angular position in all x-rays.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide a device for posing the wrist, of patients suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome, for x-rays that will optimize the revelation of the x-ray in treating the patients carpal tunnel syndrome.
Still another objective of the present invention is to provide a device for posing the joints of patients suffering from joint disorders, that can accept replaceable inserts that have been designed to support the joint at a precise predetermined angle.